For those of you who have joined us or will join us in the future, Blood Moon is a werewolf vs humanity role-playing game in which the players must survive a war torn New York City in the year of 2065 and 2066 or get devoured by packs of hungry, vicious werewolves. This thread will provide a place to discuss the characters, plot and the direction the game is going as well as answer any questions that players and lurkers may have about the game.

And of course, for starters, SUBMISSIONS STILL OPEN: ALL! Unless I say otherwise, all new players are welcome regardless of the game having already started. Do not worry about reading up on what has happened. I will provide any history necessary for your character to fit in should you jump in late in the game. Though feel free to read up if you like.

The world has been at war with the lycan for ten years today, ever since Pierre DuMont revealed his species to humanity by committing the Ash Wednesday Massacre here in New York the 3rd of March, 2055. I remember that day well, being a new Catholic priest myself and performing the rites at St. Patrick's Cathedral. Over two hundred humans; men, women and children slaughtered like cattle and devoured in one of the Orthodox churches as they performed the sacramental rite. It had outraged the human community world-wide and frightened the rest, for what had once been believed to be a myth had now become reality. How could we not be angry and frightened?

The Vatican was the first to condemn the actions of Pierre DuMont even as he declared to humanity that the lycan race would rise up and conquer their human oppressors. His Holiness Pope Peter II soon declared a holy war against DuMont and his kind, vowing that the victims of the Ash Wednesday Massacre would have justice and the creations of Satan would be exterminated. Soon after, the rest of the world religions and humanity followed the lead of the Catholic Church and the world was at war.

Human retribution had been swift, a convent claimed to be DuMont's by the Federal government, had been located in Hell's Kitchen and mercilessly destroyed, but DuMont himself had supposedly escaped. Despite the loss of what was believed to be his pack, the werewolf managed to rally the remaining lycan in New York and retaliated. At least that is what the media had reported, though I have come to think that DuMont had planned this all along. Force the humans to slaughter an innocent convent and the rest of the lycan community would rally behind him.

An urban war soon broke out between lycan and human in New York which soon spread to the rest of the world as the media broadcast the events globally. By the end of the year, New York was under martial law by the human military and much of it in ruins from the fighting. Most of the human population fled the island, but in all honesty they really had no where to go that would be safe from the lycan.

As the war escalated, more and more lycan began to appear all across the globe that it was estimated by some analyst that one-sixth of the human population were actually werewolves. No one really understood how so many lycan could have existed in such large numbers. But I, however, do understand how it is possible.

It has to do with what the lycan call the Blood Moon, a lunar eclipse that turns the moon completely red and occurs thrice every ten to twenty years. However the one that which is most significant to the werewolves is the one that occurs during the rise of the Wolf Moon. This year we had a Blood Moon in January, the month the Wolf Moon rises in the night sky, and their numbers on the island had doubled. The next one occurs in eighteen days on the 11th of January, 2066. This event, through mystical means even I cannot fathom, allows them to create new lycan from humans.

I am uncertain as to whether there is some rite the lycan must perform or they can simply bite a human and a new lycan is born. With that unknown, I fear what DuMont has in mind when the second Blood Moon rises in less than a month from now.

Although my faith in the Lord is resolute and that He will provide, I worry for the humans I am sheltering in St. Patrick's and those that resist the lycan occupation of New York...

2. “Werewolves Among Us” by Father Minghan MacCaffery, foremost expert on the lycan species.

a. Excerpt on PHYSIOLOGY

See Figure 1 in Maps & Images

The lycan, or Homo lupus, is a cursed human that can transform into a bipedal amalgamation of a wolf and human that is capable of traveling as a quadruped and perform great feats of strength and agility. Seen in the sketch done by Sister Tala, the lycan form is a lithe and tailless canine, vicious looking in appearance and very strong.

Their transformation is extremely painful and should a human have the misfortune of witnessing one, they cannot help but draw the conclusion that the madness comes from the torture of the change. The lycan can only transform with the rise of the moon regardless of its phase or whether its day or night. The transformation is not brought on by the moon against their will like most Hollywood films depict it, but rather it is an act of their will. Meaning that once the moon comes over the horizon, they have the ability to change and can revert back and forth for the duration of the moon's rise and set.

Their very existence seems to be tied with the moon and human zoologists are still puzzling over how Earth's satellite affects them. Otherwise they appear as aggressive and territorial humans with heightened senses and physiology, and a social hierarchy similar to wolves. That does not mean they are any less dangerous in this form than they are in their lycan forms. The human lycan travel in packs as much in daylight as they do at night with the rise of the moon. An uncursed human caught by one of these groups is likely to be dragged back to their lair for devouring.

The lycan are vulnerable to silver and wolfsbane, but I have found that silver weapons are more effective than the poison simply because it is rather difficult to get a werewolf to consume the poison rather than you. However wolfsbane has proven to be useful in identifying hidden lycan amidst human shelters, since contact upon the skin can cause a very terrible rash to form.

When they die, their bodies do not revert to their human forms...

b. Excerpt on ORIGINS

There is little knowledge as to how the lycans came to be. None of their kind know how they came into existence though Pierre DuMont preaches that an ancient ancestor of theirs had actually been a creation of nature and not a human cursed by God, the Devil or some witch. That, later on, this ancestor would be cursed in becoming the savage beast human myth's told of. In truth, the lycan of today are indeed cursed humans and any relation to a natural ancestor has long since been diluted from their blood.

Though there is talk among the more peaceful werewolves that this breed of lycan still exists and something I intend to look into with great interest...

c. Excerpt on PSYCHOLOGY

The lycan had been thought to be a mindless beast when they transform but the war has changed human preconceptions of the race. They are mostly vicious creatures driven by a bloodlust and malevolent hunger in which they hunt almost anything except their own. The violent clashes with the lycan packs throughout the world show that they can learn and adapt to a situation as well as any human. Simple gestures and expressions seem to be the only way they can communicate with each other, much like dogs and wolves do. Though I have personally experienced an encounter with one lycan able to form actual words, though his vocals were raspy and somewhat unclear.

There are a few lycan who are a bit more docile or peaceful in comparison to the rest of their race. These lycan are often shunned and killed by the more aggressive members. If such a lycan manages to survive their convent, they tend to be loners and wander the earth in search of a home where they can live in peace. In my travels I have come across some of these creatures and to my amazement they accepted me...

d. Excerpt on SENSES

The Lycan have extraordinary senses that can give them quite the advantage over a human being or any of their prey. Upon taking their beast form, their senses become heightened ten times greater than that of a human's. These senses are keen even while they are human, however not as great as they would be while in their beast form. Although I have not had the fortune to study a lycan's senses up close, and thank the Lord for that, I have personally observed a few of them in action. Their sense of smell is as keen as that of a wolf and are quite capable of tracking prey for miles until they come upon it. Their sense of sight is capable of spotting the slightest movement and their sense of hearing is so acute that not even holding your breath can stop them from hearing you...

3. The Background

You are a human trapped in New York by the lycan occupation for the last ten years. There are only a few hundred humans remaining in the city but twice that in werewolves. Every night is a struggle to gather resources and evade the hunting parties. The outside world is fairing no better than you are and the United States Government considers Manhattan Island a strategic location worth losing simply because it acts as a prison for the hundreds of lycan trapped there. The bridges have been destroyed and the ferries sunk. There is no way off the island until the Hudson freezes over solidly enough to walk on and even then the US Army see to it that is not even an option.

The people of New York are on their own.

Father Minghan MacCaffery leads the resistance group from St Patrick's Cathedral, the only place the lycan are unable to set foot in. Because of this it has become home to many human survivors and a fortress of hope to those within the rest of the city. An antiquated radio is their only means for outside news.

Pierre DuMont leads the lycan in New York and makes his lair somewhere in the Underground. He intends to wipe out the last of the humans on Manhattan Island. Although he has been unable to get past the ancient wards that protect St. Patrick's from his kind, he is determined to sink his fangs into Father Minghan's throat for reasons only he and Minghan know of. For this reason, the priest does not leave the Cathedral without escort.

Finally the technological level of the world is about on par with mid-21st century Star Trek: First Contact. Some laser technology, gadgets and other creative stuff but still mostly projectile weaponry, and grounded vehicles. So feel free to invent, just don't go over board. As for the magic just mentioned; it is ancient and holy, and only a very few religious figures know it.

II. Weapons & Technology of the Mid 21st Century

1. Known Weaknesses

a. Silver - a normal bullet or piercing weapon only causes harm to a lycan. A silver one prevents them from regenerating the wound since it acts as a poison. Pure silver must be used. Can be commonly found in jewelry stores.

b. Wolfsbane - also known as monkshood or aconitum, is a very deadly poison even to humans. Normally it leaves a minor rash on human skin, but on a lycan's the skin becomes severely inflamed and thus makes an excellent means of discovering hidden lycan among humans. Non-silver weapons coated with wolfsbane can become deadly to a lycan but does not guarantee death due to their regenerative abilities. A lycan that ingests wolfsbane will die within minutes of consumption. It can only be found in the wild or apothecaries.

c. Beheading/Dismemberment - possibly the only other way to kill a lycan is by lobbing off its head. Rather difficult to regenerate a new head, no? Limbs lobbed off also cannot regenerate. They can heal like Wolverine but cannot grow back missing limbs and/or digits.

2. Laser Technology - it is nothing like you would see in 22nd, 23rd and 24th century Star Trek or Star Wars. The technology is about twenty to twenty-five years old and is cumbersome and unreliable half the time. The closest thing one can compare it to is what you would find in 21st century Star Trek during WW3. See Figure 2 for an idea of what it may look like.

Name:Gender:Race: Human (unless I say otherwise)Nationality: (NYC is a tourist site, so you don't have to be American)Age:

Appearance: (Describe or provide a picture)

Where Were You: (explain a memory of where you were when Ash Wed Massacre occurred and war was declared in 2055, assuming you are old enough to remember)

Brief Background: (optional; remember at the start of this game you have been surviving for 10 years, so you probably picked up some new skills along the way)
______________________________________________

Appearance: Dark skinned, with brown eyes, and shoulder-length brown hair, that she usually keeps braided. Athletic with a slender build. About 5'6". Usually wears sneakers, but has some tall brown boots on her. Prefers camouflaged ponchos with a fur hood, and any type of clothing she can scrounge. She tends to wear pants and over-sized shirts, which she ties down. If its cold, she also has some gloves, and a ski-mask. All dark colors. Thank you army-navy stores.

Where Were You: It was bad. She had never seen that look on her parents face before. They were scared. They had come to visit other family that lived in the city. Her parents wanted her to visit the place she had been born. It had been a lovely trip. They had taken a ferry across. Zeeza peered out over the water. And the big bridge. All the tall buildings. But then something happened. It wasnt the Television or the radios, or the millions of billboards that blared all over that told them something was wrong. It was the sounds of screams. Zeeza heard them. And another sound. Like the sounds of a wild pack of dogs. Or maybe like a pride of lions which had gone mad. But mostly, it was the screaming, she heard. Her family tried to leave then. Make it for the bridge or the ferry. But so many people had the same thought, and it was impossible. Heading for the outlining areas was insane. With people going mad, and buildings burning, it was safer to stay close. Later pm. Zeeza thought she heard gunfire. It sounded like it would never stop. But when it did, the quiet was even scarier. And a crunching noise. Like a hundred feet stomping on dried branches. Her father went to check it out, but when he came back, his face looked so strange. He didnt say a word, but just led them away, going deeper within the city. They never went back to their relatives home again either. Zeeza wanted to ask why, but the look she got, just made her stay silent. But she saw the shadows. Always the moving shadows. Things simply got weird after that. It was two weeks after that, before she finally got a look at - them.

Brief Background: Zeeza was born in Brooklyn. Her parent were US citizens, who had worked in the Peace Corps. Zeeza early childhood was to grow up in the African plains, learning quickly how to be self sufficient at an early age. Hunting with primitive weapons (Bow, arrow, spear and bolas) while tending to other duties as cooking, making shelters and other things. Her dad even let her borrow the rifle on several occasions, when she was left behind for extended periods of time. But she was never bored, always out and exploring. Her parents also kept her up on her schooling as well, homeschooling was very big, as her mother was a Doctor, and her father an architect. She even had access to modern things like computers and cell phones, but Zeeza preferred the more 'simpler' way of things. When Zeeza was ten, her family came back to the states, to visit other family members whom she had not seen since she was a baby. At first, Zeeza didnt like it there. She wasnt sure how long her parents had planned to stay during the visit, but the city was a busy place. Full of funny places and smells. When the outbreak happened, Zeeza found her skills useful. She managed for 5 years to keep her family away from the demons. Every day, they had tried to find a way off the island. Every day they hunted for food, always moving. Then one day, she came back from her scavenging, to find their little hide away torn apart, and no trace of her parents. Her father she found a few blocks away, dead. She never did see her mother again.

Zeeza found an old crystal type radio kit from a radio shack, that she keeps on her, to try to hear anything useful. Thats how she found out about the church. Safety in numbers and all that stuff. In the ten years since the outbreak, she stalks the old stores for anything useful. Her favorite item now is two pistol crossbows. While bullets are hard to find for the rifle and pistol she has, she finds it is much easier to make stuff to shoot for the crossbow. And its quiet. She has a regular bow too, in case anything edible wanders by. And she is always on the hunt for stuff, especially anything silver. She dosent go into the major department stores or grocery stores. Those are death traps. Like the subways. Or gun shops. She prefers going into abandoned homes, especially those more wealthy homes. Easier to find more silver there. Pawn shops also make a good quick stop, for other stuff like batteries, camping supplies, and other essentials. Jewelry stores too. She has several knives as well, always within reach. Silver spoons, forks, knives, anything is useful. She has heard there is anything thing that kills em, but she dosent know much about that. So far, silver has always worked for her. As does running. She can run pretty fast.
______________________________________________________

Name: John GarrettGender: MaleRace: HumanNationality: American; born and raised in southeastern PennsylvaniaAge: 49

Appearance: John is of average height (about 6’1”) and average build; Fair skin with hazel eyes, a strong jawline and short, brown hair that is beginning to streak with silver, especially around the temples; he almost always has a bit of stubble upon his chin; his attire is pretty simple and consists of tan or gray cargo pants, reinforced work boots, a jacket/coat and t-shirt and sometimes gloves, depending on the weather; his essential gear is mostly left over from his days as a cop and includes sidearm, knife, flashlight, hand-held radio, handcuffs and riot vest; he also walks with a noticeable limp from a gunshot wound.

Where Were You: The farmlands of Pennsylvania were anything but quiet that night. It was a rare occasion in that John actually had the evening off to spend time with his 14-year old daughter, Maddie. He didn’t see her too often due to the divorce with his wife and when the opportunity arose, he jumped on it. In this case, Maddie wanted to spend a quiet evening with her father by attending the local church for Ash Wednesday services. John wasn’t exactly what you would call religious, but he obliged if only to be with his daughter. The service ended and they were leaving the parking lot when the first call came in over the police scanner about the incident. At first, it was all very surreal and John even went as far as to brush it off as a prank - until panic began to set in locally. Seeing the fear and uncertainty in the faces of the people he worked and lived with was enough to hit home – it was really happening and at the moment, they were powerless to prevent the plague and fear from spreading. Of course, being in his line of work, it was only a matter of time before the call came in that would ultimately send him away from home to help with the efforts in New York. That night was the last time he saw Maddie or had any contact with her.

Brief Background: Before being stranded in New York to fend for himself, John was a cop, (a homicide detective, really) working for the Philadelphia Police Department. He had a fractured home life due to the divorce from his wife, so the police force was basically all he had. He was borderline obsessed with his work and even had the reputation around the department as ‘the good cop.’ Despite the moniker, he also had a tendency to stick his nose in where it didn’t belong, which occasionally came back to bite him. Many suspect this is what happened when he was shot in the leg on one particular case he was working, but John remains tight-lipped over the whole incident. Only those ‘in-the-know’ claim to know the whole story.

That particular trait also had its advantages, however. After being sent to New York to help with the efforts against the lycan, it was that same inquisitiveness and sense of entitlement that caused him to stumble across St. Patrick’s Cathedral and the resistance housed within its walls.

While John may not be the fastest on his feet due to his injury or the strongest, he is a decent shot and can handle a gun quite well. He even sometimes took a liking to melting down silver objects he found on scavenging hunts to use within his sidearm...just for fun and to see what that kind of a projectile would do to a lycan's head when it made contact. ________________________________________________

While her icy blue eyes are captivating, Michaela's most apparent feature is the scar that spans from one cheek to the other. Faded freckles splay from beneath it like speckles of blood, comparing well with her bronze-auburn hair that is always pulled back from her face. She is a slim girl, but holds a sort of inner strength to her. Her clothing varies, though all of it appears to be name-brand, or what was name-brand, when name-brand actually mattered. Hanging from her neck is a small cross penchant that she frequently rubs between her fingers. In addition to the necklace, she always keeps with her a small pistol. She keeps it tucked it her pocket, making it apparent to everyone.

Where Were You: Performing. Like she had always done.

Brief Biography: She was an international singer.

That's pretty much all everyone knows about her, that and her name.

While kind and compassionate to those with her in the church, she keeps quiet as she can. When she does speak, her Irish twinge becomes evident. Those few people who recognized her as a star begged her to sing, but she always refused. If asked about the scar on her face, she remained even quieter.

Her one show of weakness is children. She holds a special place for them, and some even say they hear her murmuring soft sing-a-longs to the babies as she rocks them to sleep.

Over the years, people have learned not to ask her questions. Especially with the side-glance she gives her pistol whenever someone asks of her past. Quick, but not quick enough to escape notice. She's helpful enough in things and does what needs to be done, but rarely converses with others.

Whatever her past was, it matters little now. All that matters is survival.

_____________________________________________________

Name: Kevin O'BrianGender: MaleRace: HumanNationality: Irish-American (NYC is a tourist site, so you don't have to be American)Age: 38

Appearance:
6'3" with a large stocky build.

Where Were You: He was in town when it happened, sleeping in a nice hotel on the east side. Whilst his parents were attending church, the church.(explain a memory of where you were when Ash Wed Massacre occurred and war was declared in 2055)

Brief Background: His family for the past two generations had been partnered to the Cloona Cool fishery. Which was expanding once more, though now to add a fishery location in the USA to accommodate the growing demand for Cloona Cool, Arctic Char fish to the foreigners. Truly it was a wonderful fresh water fish that was meaty like the halibut with a nice natural cream but grew like a trout.

With the operation expanding his younger brother had taken to representing the company in New York, while Kevin would be at the new fishery being built in northern Minnesota, and his parents had come with him in tow on his 28th birthday to celebrate and have another ta-ta-rah before he and his brother was separated from the family by such a big sea. Being he was born during his parents fishery summits in the US he was the logical choice to represent the companies interests in America due to his dual citizenship.

They had partied hard, perhaps taken a bit more stout then was proper, and he and his brother both had been worse for the hair of the dog Sunday morning and so their parents had gone on without them. They had both promised they would go to evening mass, even midnight mass if one was available to make up for it before the family parted ways on the next day. Despite being at the Waldorf Hotel his parents had walked the several blocks to St. Patricks. When the massacre happened his brother and he slept. After waking his brother made to leave as he had urged him to, and he became lost in the city. The world had gone mad, his reservations were up and he dared not ask for more and instead sought something he knew his parents would not approve. He sought revenge.

Due to this he found his way to all the churches, dojo's or what have you, and all the seediest contacts he could make to prepare and deal revenge. One such stop at a church found him at St. Patrick's and lending his might to those there. Defending what he can, and avenging what he can't as the world becomes bleak.
___________________________________________________

Over the years, Gustavo has put together a decent set of gear. He’s scavenged a protective vest, elbow and knee pads, heavy gloves, shin guards, insulated boots and weather proof garments. His leather duster and bandoleer for his silvered blades are a staple. He carries a silvered spear with a shaft banded in leather and steel rings. And his luckiest find, ‘Madame X’, which is the nickname for a still functional, albeit depleted laser weapon he recovered from the corpse of a dead MP.

Where Were You: He was 16 years old when it happened. Gustavo lived in the L.E.S, Lower East Side in New York City. Third Street and avenue A to be exact. It was just another day as he was coming home from school. He was rushing home as he had to go to the dojo after school and had forgotten his gear at home. Mom would be at Church, getting her ashes.

As planned, he grabbed a bite to eat from the fridge, read Mom’s note and headed to the dojo. On his way, his Samsung Galaxy Omega was beeping with multiple messages from friends and news feeds, even a local alert had gone off. There was some kind of riot going on in the city. Gus reached the dojo, where everyone was looking at the news. Their faces….haunted. Curious, he walked over to the plasma screen, and what he saw would not only blow his mind, it would change his life forever.

After the Ash Wednesday Massacre, ( that’s what the media outlets were calling that terrible incident) the entire city was in the grip of fear. Everything had changed in a blink of an eye. No one felt safe. And thus, it wasn’t long before terror struck again. Several weeks later, there was another Lykan incident, unknown to most, this was spill-over from the Hell’s Kitchen reprisal. On this particular day, there was a sudden commotion outside the dojo…and it grew louder as it got closer. The sound of fighting became more intense. There were grunts of pain, animal snarling, then screams. Everyone rushed into the sparring room and grabbed weapons. Gus followed suit, his heart racing….fear began to challenge his disciplined mind. Training to win a street brawl was one thing….but…werewolves? His mind could not wrap itself around it. These creatures belonged in anime, in D&D games and fiction stories. They weren’t real. That’s when the room burst into chaos and the snarling fury of a wounded lykan was made a reality. Someone had shot the creature, but it was not nearly enough to bring it down.

The carnage at the dojo was something he would never forget. Punches and kicks were ineffective against the thing. Only those with weapons training seemed to have a little hope. Gus had only begun weapons training in January. Still, the thing cut down through many students and elder brothers with frightening ease, for the creature was both strong and fast. They were all yelling and KIAYING at the top of their lungs, swept up by the frenzied moment. Two brothers proficient with the staff engaged the creature, but wood against claws was a poor match-up, which fared the same as claws against flesh. Gus managed to stab the creature where he thought a kidney should be, thankfully he was far enough not to be shredded open by the back-swipe from the creature, though his spear was now shattered. The thing turned to him, and surely he knew he would be dead, but Sifu, who had not died from an earlier wound, drove his sword clean through the creature…with every erg his last breath could muster.

It was over, and nearly everyone was dead. Mom never came home that night. Gus….he knew why, even before he was called to identify the body. Ever since that day…he knew….he knew what he had to do and how he would die.

Brief Background: Ironically enough, the little Gus had learned about fighting werewolves came from stories, and they happened to be true. Silver was fatal to them and wolfsbane an irritant. Gus, now known as ‘Guts’, allied himself with other werewolf survivors from young, training and learning how to hunt them in groups and how to best flee from a pack and throw off their tracking senses. In time, Guts found his way to St. Patrick’s Cathedral and became completely loyal to Father MacCaffery.

To his last breath, Guts has vowed to put and end to the threat of the Lycans and exact his long awaited revenge._________________________________________

Where Were You: At home. I was at home. The thing is, I should not have been. I should have been there. I should have been with my wife and my two kids and if I had been I would not have been forced into the hollow miserable existence I am now living. The girl you saw on TV, the one with half her face ripped of, that was my little girl. You remember it? I remember every detail of it, as if it was burned into my subconscious.

Brief Background: Gruber was once a successful industrialist with a chain of factories and a high profile contract for the US army to produce the one good that the world always needs more of. Ammo. 7.62. 45er. 9mm. Whatever it was, his firm had it. American Ammo Industries also developed secret ammunition for the US army. Stealth ammo. Smart ammo. Invisible ammo. Cheap ammo. Armor piercing ammo. There were so many types of ammo not even the CEO had any idea how many they build. The war changed all that, of course. The state took what they had in store and yet, it did not did them any good. A world of ammo was rendered useless against an enemy who was immune to it.

Gruber did not care. He did not care to be evacuated in a helicopter from his estate in Manhattan, either. He did not care at all to run away. That night, when he saw what happened to his family he took all the family silver . . . and rich New Yorkers like they had become had quite a bit of silver . . . and went to the cellar, where his old machines were stored away. Then he begun to built the only ammo the world would need. Silver bullets. He melted a fortune in silver and made bullets out of it, only emerging from work to get something to eat. That way he missed most of humanities little apocalypse. When he emerged the bridges were down and the tunnels sealed. The city lay in ruins. Yet, he had what he needed. He left the safety of his highly secured flat with his best rifle and his bullets and began to hunt.

He did little else for the last 10 years. By now he has found a new home in the new church, but that does not mean he spends a lot time there. Whenever he feels like it he leaves and hunts the hunters. Some think he is a revenge junkie. The few people who know him better know, that he truly is looking for death out there. Hoping every night, that he is killed, while feeling the obligation to do whatever he can to stay alive. Over the years he grew better. But he compensated this by taking greater risks. An expert marksman and skilled in stealth Robert nevertheless feels his age slowly demanding it’s tribute. It only fits him well. As long as he has his gun and bullets, he will keep on killing. And when he runs out of his precious silver ammo? Now there are only 32 of his original 300 bullets left. He also has created a silver knife and many say he will hunt with that one, once he runs out of bullets. Others say he saves the last bullet for himself. Time will show. For now he is the worst enemy the wolves can imagine. A man with nothing too loose.

The “Gruber” is a custom made prototype rifle for military use, having a five shot capacity and a remarkable precision. Laser-sight is integrated as an option. The gun is unusual silent and deadly. Gruber has no other ammo than his silver bullets.
___________________________________________________

Where Were You: Where I'd been ordered. Where I'd been for two years - in the protective escort of the Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations, who himself had been in New York when the Ash Wednesday Massacre hit, and the war, when what we called the Years of the Wolf began. I remember that day, in the UN Building. Everyone was rushing around, but the Ambassador - Solomon Ben Gurion - he was like a stone at the bottom of a whirlpool. He sat there, watching the screens. He didn't move. He just watched. And when the news channels started repeating the same bulletins, he whispered something. I wish I knew what it was.

Brief Background: Well, where do you start with a life. Especially when the past ten years feel like I never left home. Why not where I'm from. I was born in Israel, born one of the Chosen, went through the britz too young to remember it, thank God. There's some settler blood in me, apparently, but the family didn't talk much about it. They were always more interested in farming; none of that GM stuff they used to make the Arabian deserts green, back to good old dirt and dung and seeds and sun. I don't know whether it was my grandfather or my father who taught me more about that. But it must've got in there somewhere between them having me run up and down hills for them.

Then of course I did my two years in the IDF, and to my everlasting discredit I wasn't able to conceal I was better with my fingers than my eyesight. By then of course there was enough VR enhancement gear that glasses didn't preclude you from Special Forces anymore, so over I went to the School, and there they taught me an extra ten ways to kill someone, although truthfully I can't remember more than one or two now, and they're only from long range. They taught me to use electronic seeds there; all the seeds that go into bombs and listening devices and motion detectors and all the rest. And they taught me how to get in and out without being seen.

Why a bombs and burglaries man wound up on the retinue of an Ambassador to the United Nations I ascribe to bureaucratic mentality.
Well, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

I do know why I wound up here: because when the Army lost control of Manhattan Island and it started to go bad, there was one less seat on the helicopter out than required. I am not bitter about that. To their credit they did what they could for me before flying off into the sunset. They left me with enough weapons -- pretty well all of them are gone now -- and enough ammo -- much of which is gone now -- to last a few years. And they also thoughtfully left behind my personal packages, which similarly has gone thin over the years but still has a few oddments left to it. It does not escape me that I might well be the last Jew in New York City. Given what the old reruns of Seinfeld used to suggest about the Big Apple it's about as not-funny as the show was.

That is not the only irony. More than anything else, the last ten years have been about being a farmer. There is the adrenalin-pumping, screaming terror of the prospect of being torn limb from limb by a Lycan, of course, but I've been a farmer first and foremost.

Aconitum Ranunculaceae, known by the very goy name of Wolfsbane, you see, grows in mountainous regions in the northern hemisphere, a perennial poison, and does so in all seasons, providing of course you give it well-drained but moisture-holding soil. New York City lacks natural mountains of course, but the skyscrapers they'd built out here had been enough stories on them to simulate different atmospheres let alone different climates. I've got a decent number of window boxes out on Olympic Tower, next door to the Cathedral. The hardest part was finding the stuff in the wild to start with. I've kept the good stuff and the larger crops hidden sufficiently that I don't think I'll run out any time soon. That's been bitter experience; I had other crops on other skyscrapers but they've succumbed either to Lycans or worse still, other people. Soil's not simple to come by, but I suppose if forced I could set out with a spade for Central Park.

Not that I'd like to do that, mind.

Meanwhile, there's also been the bench-testing, trying to make little smoke bombs that the Lycans really don't terribly like one bit, and hand-throwing ammunition with aconitum coating ... motion sensors on the crops, IEDs ... all the usual things. Being a farmer. Growing death, if you will.
_________________________________________________

Appearance:Side note: I am leaving out the optics, headset, and helmet. The balaclava is still there when I decide to wear it.
Not pictured: Pants tucked into black combat boots.Under the balaclava:
(Ignore the clothing in this picture, just imagine her tactical gear. )

Where Were You:
In her new apartment, she had moved to America at the age of eight-teen. A very intelligent and athletic girl she seemed to have a natural ability to lead. Recently she was admitted into NYU Polytechnic's Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering school. A few months before she was set to start everything changed. Sitting closed up in her room, headphones on and unaware of the chaos growing outside, a friend and caretaker she kept in contact with from the orphanage she grew up in sent her a message.

Hey!

I have been working on my English, after living there for many months this must be easier for you. You have to listen to this song, classic music is so cool!

No one listened to music this old anymore, it was the perfect trigger. The Russian government had gotten word of the lycan outbreak and triggered her to investigate at risk of her life. Soon after she received a call from her handler, the man called Dusan, explaining what needed to be done. While she still has free will she cannot fight the compulsion to continue her mission: Find the stash holding her equipment, record the actions of the lycans, take samples if possible, locate and monitor survivors, and exterminate any hostile lycans.

Brief Background:
When Katia was younger she had always been of a scientific mind and a very quiet demeanor, growing up in the orphanage she was always reading and learning about the world, the universe, and technological advances. At least... That's what her memories were. The orphanage was a secret front for an sinister clandestine plot, even in the modern world, knowledge was power. The nations of the world still held mistrust and secrecy towards one another and the Russian Federation took extreme measures as a method of disaster control. Sleeper agents were created from the unwanted children of their country and sent to different countries around the world. Growing up Katia had always been compelled to move to New York City and graduate with an engineering degree. This was where she was 'programmed' to go, hiding in plain sight should the worst happen.

After the Ash Wednesday Massacre it had taken almost a year amongst the chaos to locate her equipment. There was no conceivable thought of something as insane as werewolves being real to cause a need for preparation. Therefore her experimental carbine rifle was essentially useless with the bullets it had. As she further examined the lycans from afar and in trying to evade them she holds firm that there is a scientific explanation for the occurrence of these beasts as any religious significance holds no place in her mind.

Any survivors she has come across usually try to travel with her or stay clear of her. Very rarely will one try to attack her as her demeanor and equipment is intimidating to most. Always a woman of few words and never traveling with another. Over the ten years since the outbreak she has spent much of her time in hiding and moving only during periods of low activity amongst the lycans, conserving her ammunition has been as much a priority as finding food and water. Her rifle specifications allow her to use 7.62 rounds, each of her 6 magazines carry 20 arounds. Altogether she has only gone through a few magazines and has been lucky to find stashes or stores of the required ammunition, whether hidden by her organization underground in some forgotten place or scrounged from a body, Katia managed to get by. Eventually Dusan was able to give her silver bullets over the years, due to the global spread of the lycans and political complications this was done by dead drops and indirect communication. Now fully equipped with silver bullets and a silver combat knife she has been able to more effectively operate in lycan territory. 6 months ago contact with Dusan went silent and Katia has been on her own, the notes left in her caches told of increasingly worse news and it was only a matter of time. Still carrying out her mission she still keeps her comm gear on her, though the batteries are dead and the small solar panel used to charge it had become worn and cracked. As the years continued she sanitized much of her gear, the batteries were dead and irreplaceable, and the blue LED lights on her tactical clothing have since burnt out, though that is to her advantage.

Altogether she has become quite the hunter, able to evade and track werewolves as need be. Locating the dwindling number of caches left by her handlers and experimenting with trying to weaponize Wolfsbane if she could find it. Passing by St. Patrick's Cathedral many times unnoticed, Katia has taken an interest in the survivors there and has finally made the decision to no longer hunt alone.Two survivors in particular catching her attention, Robert and Benjamin.
_____________________________________

Happened like this, I was a Roman to Medieval era re-enactor by choice, though I always turned out for the Sealed Knot people when they needed extra bodies - and an Armourer by necessity; if you're not rolling in money, authentically-manufactured gear is prohibitively expensive unless one makes it oneself. Eventually, the Armouring side became my profession, it was lucrative; there aren't many of us about.

So I got hired onto a Hollywood Movie - you won't have seen it, the publicity and the family's feelings saw to that - to make the Star a proper Plate Harness and weapons. No way was an ego that size going to be seen in 'Munition Armour' from the Props' store; not when he could strut about in a made-to-measure 'Parade' suit! Also showed the cast how to handle the weapons properly, as they would have in-period; and helped weed-out the more fantasy-inspired suits. Everyone was pleased and everything went fine until the wrap-up party.

Don't know how, because I'm a soft-drink only man, but either someone topped it up with alcohol or someone slipped some drug into my glass. Got woken up by Police on the floor of a blood-spattered room, complete with the naked body of the female lead on the bed and the Misericorde I'd made for the Star sticking out of her. Don't know how my fingerprints and DNA got on the hilt, either. Open and shut case, according to the Police, the Prosecutor and the Judge.

Fast-forward to three years ago when some idiot put one of those things into the Gaol without checking it properly. Transformed one night, murdered and ate its cellmate then ripped the bars clear out of their mountings. The guards tried, but that thing just ignored the bullets they fired at it. Must have been thinking 'here's a nice place, good food supply'! More guards showed up, some with metal poles, some with spades, some with riot-shields, a few with axes; and tried to cover an evacuation; they died trying. My cell had been one that had been opened and one of the dead had dropped a fire-axe right outside - not as good as a Saxon Battleaxe, but close enough - and there was also a riot-shield nearby. Basically, I got lucky. Either that, or gorging itself and carrying all that lead slowed it down. Anyway, my first stroke took off one of its arms, my second its head.

Turned out that the powers that be needed someone expendable to check out information from overheads at street level and report in, seems there's indications of survivors on the island!

At least I was allowed to make my own gear. Not that I think I'm invulnerable, but a good suit of plate means they'll have to work hard at getting me. No, no firearms thanks; they're useless when they run out of ammo. I'll rely on my longsword, my battleaxe and the take-apart bow in my pack; also my elbowing spikes, silvered blades and wolfsbane injectors in one.
______________________________________________

A: Blood Moon is a werewolf vs humanity game. It is in no way related to Underworld: Rise of the Lycans or the Underworld universe. There are no vampires, zombies or other fantastical creatures in this world. Only werewolves.

Q: Can I still join the game?

A: Yep! Door is always open for new players! Just send me your CS for approval first.

Q: Since the lycans are cursed humans, is there magic?

A: Yes and no. The only magic in the game is ancient and holy. It is only used by those who know of it and have trained in it, which is usually the very important religious figures such as The Pope and his Cardinals for example. So sorry, no magic for you. Just conventional weapons and your wits.

Q: What kind of weapons can we use in the game?

A: Conventional weapons mostly, however there are some laser technology equivalent to 21st Century Star Trek. And of course any weapon you can create from whatever you can find in the abandoned New York City.

Q: Can I become a lycan if bitten/injured by one?

A: Nope and the reason why will be explained in the game. This answer is subjective to change as the game progresses and things are revealed.

Q: Can I be a lycan?

A: No. Unless you can manage to convince as to why I should let you, the only lycans will be those controlled by me. The reason why I won't allow player lycans is because you only have two or three places I can put you and all of them will ultimately end in your demise. A) You can be placed with DuMont's convent of lycans and get killed by the humans, B) you could be with the humans but risk discovery by Father Minghan and Sister Tala and be killed by the humans or C) you can go it alone and run into either groups and die horribly. Either options will not be all that fun for you.

Q: How do I kill a lycan?

A: With silver bullets or silver piercing weapons. Wolfsbane (Aconitum) can also kill a lycan if you can get one to ingest it or into their bloodstream. Wolfsbane is mostly used as a means to identify lycan hiding among humans should one be suspected. Both items are difficult to come by though silver is a little easier since one can simply raid a jewelry store for it.

Q: What forms can they take?

A: Human and bi-pedal monstrosities. Further details on their species is in Basic Info.

Q: How many lycan are there on the island?

A: A lot. About twice as many as there are humans.

Q: Can I get off the island?

A: Maybe. All bridges and ferries were destroyed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in order to contain the lycans running rampant on the island before they realize lycans were everywhere in the world. The only time you can cross the water on foot is when the Hudson, East, and Herlem Rivers freeze over.

Q: Can I create my own sub-plot?

A: Sure, just run it by me first so it doesn't conflict with the main plot I got going.

Q: Can I have more than one character?

A: If you can handle more than one, I don't mind.

Q: Can I kill other characters?

A: Only if you have the players permission to do so though I don't see why you would want to kill off your fellow humans. As for the GM characters, if it is a named character such as Pierre DuMont, I will decide if that character dies or not. Unnamed NPCs, unless I state otherwise, can be killed if you have the means to kill them.

Q:What do I do if I cannot post?

A: Talk to me if you are going away for more than 48hrs or have a personal issue that prevents you from posting within that time frame. If I know what has happened to you I can take care of your character for you until you return or grant you an extra two days to get in a post. If I do not hear from you in the initial or extended time frame I will take the reins of your character and move the game along. Do not worry I won't let any harm come to your character in the meantime. If you're gone for a long period without notice, your character will be placed in limbo until your return.

Q: But I had a scene in mind and now you ruined it!

A: One word: Flashbacks. If something was very important that you wanted to post but couldn't submit it in time due to time constraints, a flashback is a good way to get a continuity scene added. If it requires the participation of another player, consult them first before you do it. Just don't abuse the writing technique.

Q: How do I get a hold of you outside of the JC?

A: I use Skype these days and only give it out to people I trust. With that said, the only way you can get ahold of me these days is through the PM system here on the boards. My alerts are set so I will be given a notification via email when I have a message pending here. So don't worry, I'll get your messages.

Q: I have a problem with the game/a player, what do I do?

A: If your problem involves the game itself, bring it up here in this thread and I will try to resolve it. If your problem is with another player, try and resolve the issue with that player first in PM. Do not bring it in here. If you still cannot resolve the problem, contact both myself and the player in question together via PM. If it's an issue that only a Mod can resolve, contact one of the RPF Mods about it.

Q: I want to kill my character and start over, can I?

A: Uh... yeah. Only time I won't allow it is if I've closed submissions. If I have, think long and hard and hope I don't have a queue.

So a bit of information concerning your situation in the cathedral and Manhattan:

Living Arrangements

As you know you all have been living in the cathedral up to almost 10 years for some of you. There are not that many rooms in the cathedral. The sacristies are mostly in the crypt area and the one big one for the Archbishop near the Sanctuary. For those who don't know what a sacristy is, it's essentially an apartment for the clergy. Sometimes they are furnished with living necessities or made into an office. The clergy keep their vestments and holy items here. Such items will have been moved into storage by Minghan and Tala.

The sacristies are used as a make-shift infirmary for the sick and injured in order to keep them away from everyone else, except for the Archbishop's sacristy. That one has been converted into the MacCaffery's apartment and can be used as an emergency infirmary, usually when someone is too injured to be moved down the stairs such as Chris currently is.

The Nave consists of four large rows of pews with an additional row in each transept. Here is where most of the people live, eat and sleep. People have managed to personalize the area for themselves.

The South Transept has make-shift privacy screens erected for people to change or for a place to themselves. Privacy is hard to come by in the cathedral. The Confessionals also act as a place to get a moments peace.

The North Transept was converted into a common room with a large fireplace. The door was taken down (and stored) and a brick fireplace was built in its place. Why I put guards there on the map, I don't know. Doh. Cooking is mostly done here.

The bathrooms and baths are not in the cathedral's main building. St Patrick's does have two additional buildings outside on the east end of the property. These buildings are mostly offices and more apartments, and other purposes. They've been looted by vandals and you guys for anything useful. For the sake of sanitation, you guys take care of that part of life there during the daylight hours. Because the utilities companies do require power to give you all freshwater, that is one item you all have to bring in from the rivers in order to bathe and use the toilets. Fortunately the East River is not that far from St. Patrick's. Unfortunately it is saltwater and therefore is only good for hygiene. The Hudson, however, is freshwater and your source of drinking and cooking water unless you manage to find packaged water that hasn't turned into standing water after ten years.

Back inside. The Sanctuary and beyond is off limits to habitation. You all can move about there but are not permitted to live in that part of the cathedral for religious reasons. The Altars are also off limits for habitation for the same reasons. You all can pray and light candles. Confessionals are still open for your daily confessions and advice and the main method Minghan learned about each of you, should your characters have partaken in that rite.

The few upper rooms are too small for habitation and are used for storing important religious items or food and other supplies.

Minghan also makes everyone help in keeping the cathedral clean. So you guys don't experience poor living conditions of the likes that occurred in the New Orleans Saints Superdome during Katrina or a refugee camp.

That takes care of living arrangements, now for food.

Food and Water

All food and water that is scavenged is also sought after by the lycans. Scavengers beware!

Your source of fresh vegetables comes from rooftop and window gardens on nearby buildings, as well as the cathedral garden. Your source of fresh meat comes from the very few wild life that has found its way onto Manhattan Island and zoo animals that now roam and breed freely, as well as fishing from the Hudson and East Rivers. I'm thinking one way you guys dispose of the dead lycans is to dump them where the predators can scavenge them, instead of hunting you. Any meat is smoked and salted and rationed when you guys manage to get some. Which, these days, is rare. Between you guys and the lycans, the animals have been nearly hunted to death.

Canned goods are found in the city where ever you all search for supplies. You're finding it difficult to find canned food close to home. Freshwater, as mentioned before, is brought in from the Hudson River during daylight hours in the summer days. Winter, the snow is collected and boiled. You are unable to keep livestock due to a lack of feed and that the lycans will hunt them. Fresh eggs come from the nests of chickens gone wild (yes there are chickens in NYC) or pigeon nests, if you can find them.

Plenty of pre-packaged tea and coffee though! Ktala will be happy at least.

Whiskey, scotch, bourbon, and other hard liquors are scavenged from stores. Somebody has made a brewery over in the Olympian Tower and makes beer when the ingredients have been grown or scavenged. Minghan does not approve but is wise enough not to argue with beer-deprived Americans

Electronics and Communication

You guys have an old tuner radio that is plugged in to the generator. It is your source for outside news. You also have short-ranged walkies plundered from police stations. Smartphones and tablets or other electronics can be powered when charged via the generator, but are useless as a means of communication. Internet was effectively cut off when the tunnels and bridges got destroyed. The cables run through those and without power the ISPs cannot function anyway. The cell towers also do not work without power and some have been destroyed from the Battle of Manhattan. You have not found a satellite phone, but Sir Gawain has a satellite radio

The News Media buildings are pretty much useless to you at this point. Again without power, none of the electronics and communications technology can be used. They do have generators for the buildings though, but fuel is a precious resource and won't be wasted lightly. Whether other survivors have tried to use the News Media as a means of communication or not, you don't know. You do know that you guys had tried a couple times a few years back but got no answer. Since then you just save the fuel for yourselves.

Power and fuel. A rare resource.

St. Patrick's is partially powered by an old, out-dated generator that takes diesel to run and is kept on the roof. Diesel is found from abandoned vehicles or siphoned from gas stations' petroleum wells. At least the ones that weren't bled dry from the mass exodus of Manhattan 10 years ago. Manhattan's power plant no longer functions due to a lack of maintenance and fuel, so the entire island is without power.

St Patrick's is lit mostly by candlelight and sunlight during the day. At night, the generator powers only a few of the chandeliers above the Nave and the Lady Chapel. Every other place is lit by candlelight. Candles are plenty and easy to come by. Melted wax is saved to make into candles or used for other things. Did you know candle wax can be used to seal an open wound if stitching is unavailable? Ow.

Batteries. Although the technology has improved in the last 50 years since our time, they still do have a shelf life, as Saintheart pointed out in his post, but can be found. Any useable ones that are found are used for important electronics that cannot be plugged in to recharge.

Now for medical.

You have one doctor, an Indian national by the name of Doctor Rushil Singh who likes to drink a lot and whom Minghan tries to sober up by keeping the hard stuff from him but is not always successful. Minghan also knows a little medicine, mostly learned from Singh when he hadn't taken to the drink yet. There are also a couple nurses.

The sacristies in the crypt, as mentioned before, have been converted into an infirmary where the sick and injured are tended. Medicine and equipment is obtained from the hospitals and general practices.

Atropine is the usual antidote for aconite poisoning. it is also used for resuscitation and you're running low.

Weapons.

You have whatever has been found from police stations, dead soldiers and officers, abandoned military vehicles, and so on. Some armories are empty from the battle and evacuation of the city. Some are not empty and you guys still loot them whenever you can.

Conventional weapons ranging from handguns to automatic rifles, from machetes to knives and so on. Normal bullets and rare silver bullets that you were able to make. You also have Gustavo's laser rifle. You have found others that are inoperable from damage but might work if you can fit intact parts together and find a battery or use to repair Gustavo's own. You have some anti-personnel explosives and weapons remaining, including the big .50 caliber machine gun which you guys got lucky and found it on an overturned anti-personnel carrier.

Now for Manhattan.

As you know the city is without power and had endured a very big battle between the U.S. Army and the NYPD against Pierre DuMont's Lycan Liberators. I'll give a summarized timeline of what happened and this is stuff you all will know IC anyway.

Mar 3rd, 2055 – 8:45pm Ash Wed Massacre. NYPD responds to reports of an attack on the Orthodox Church in Lower Manhattan. All attendees are slaughtered and broadcast on national television by an anonymous video submission an hour later. Most lycans escape the NYPD response.

Mar 10th, 2055 – 11:12am Pope Peter II, from St. Peter's Square, announces to the world of the existence of werewolves and the threat that they pose to humanity. He also declares a holy war against the lycans.

Mar 17th, 2055 - 1:00pm Katia receives an email from her minder and becomes activated. She begins gathering her equipment stashed in the city.

April-May – The Vatican conducts a quiet war against lycans throughout Europe.

May 12th, 2055 – 12:00am Father Minghan's book “Werewolves Among Us” is published. It would not be given any creditability until a year later, far too late for Manhattan and many other human population centers world-wide.

May 23rd, 2055 – 7:05pm Hell's Kitchen Slaughter. After receiving supposedly reliable intelligence, a joint action between the National Guard and Army see to the destruction of the Hell's Kitchen convent consisting of over twenty lycans that were wrongfully accused of the Ash Wed Massacre. Gustavo encounters one of these lycans near his dojo as the fighting wandered near.

May 24th, 2055 – 6:00pm The major news networks discover a YouTube video from Pierre DuMont condemning the Hell's Kitchen slaughtering and the Vatican's war against lycans. He calls for his brethren to take up arms and to avenge their fallen.

May 25th, 2055 – 3:00am The Human-Lycan War has officially begun with a lycan attack on the 69th Regiment Armory in which a lycan posed as a soldier and walked into the building before slaughtering the soldiers stationed there. Afterward the armory was looted by his comrades which leads to further battles during the day.

May 25th, 2055 – 7:20am The Governor of New York declares a state of emergency as violence breaks out in Manhattan. Martial Law is declared as further military forces are brought in to combat the lycan threat.

May 28th, 2055 – 12:15pm The Governor orders the evacuation of civilians as it becomes apparent the lycans are not easily defeated and civilian casualties are rising. The Army and National Guard are strapped with defending evacuees from lycans and keeping the offensive on the lycans. Progress is made during the day but is lost at night. Many civilians get trapped behind battle lines.

May 28th, 2055 – 5:00pm The Vatican orders the evacuation of the Archdioceses of New York. Most of the Roman Catholic Church leaves the island except for Archbishop Richard MacCaffery, Father Minghan and Sister Tala and a few others.

May-June – Word of what is happening in New York City spreads across the United States and the rest of the world through Pierre DuMont's YouTube broadcasts and the Media. His account is frozen by Homeland Security shortly after the first few videos and the EBS is activated, allowing the U.S. Government to seize control of the airways and internet. By then it is too late and the lycans rally world-wide against humanity and the Vatican.

June 1st, 2055 – 2:00pm St. Patrick's Cathedral open's its doors to any civilians that remain on the island. Word soon spreads and a small resistance force is formed within it's stone walls.

June 10th, 2055 – 4:30pm The Archbishop is killed by a lycan in human form while trying to aide wounded soldiers outside of St. Patrick's Cathedral. Minghan and Tala are devastated. John Garrett joins the resistance there.

June 11th, 2055 – 7:20pm Kevin O'Brian comes across St. Patrick's and helps to defend the cathedral.

June 14th, 2055 – 12:00pm The military withdraws from Manhattan Island and declares the city a lost location.

June 15th, 2055 – 1:25pm The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers destroy all bridges and tunnels out of Manhattan Island. The U.S. Navy sink all sea vessels that remain and can be used to transport lycans off the island. Any humans that remain on the island at that point are now stranded alongside the lycans. Communication is also cut off. The city lies in ruins.

June 20th, 2055 – Father Minghan finds Gustavo Guerrero during one of his morning searches for human survivors and brings him back to St. Patrick's.

July 3rd, 2055 - Zeeza N'dori makes her way to St. Patrick's.

August 2056 – Benjamin Eshkol comes to St. Patrick's and sets up his gardens in the Olympian Tower shortly after, providing a much needed supply of wolfsbane.

Feb 2059 – Robert Gruber is discovered by Kevin O'Brian during one of the scavenging hunts and brings him back to the cathedral.

2055-2065 – The lycans and human survivors exchange blows in many skirmishes across Manhattan over the years. St. Patrick's Cathedral's numbers grow as more and more survivors hear of the resistance there and the protection the place provides.

Dec 25th, 2065 – 7:00am Pierre DuMont sends a pack to attack the cathedral for reasons unknown. The attack fails and two new survivors show up, Katia and Josephus Carter (no relation to the President). At the same time Robert Gruber encounters a lycan family in his family home.

One thing I'm wondering is what sort of game you envision, in the long run. The setting is pretty rich, but even with this premise you could go many different directions. Is this going to be like survival horror, with a lot of emphasis on going out on "missions" to kill/fight werewolves? Is it post-apocalyptic survival, in the fashion of 28 Days Later or The Walking Dead, where people are just trying to make sense of their lives and move on after a horrible tragedy? Are we trying to unravel the ancient mysteries behind why werewolves exist, and how we can use holy magic to stop them? Something else? What?

Yes I will answer open questions. Its what the thread is for after all.

All the above. There is a mystery around the werewolves that will be woven into the story. Pierre DuMont is up to something which Father Minghan hinted to in his journal entry. Players have to survive in a, to them, a post apocalyptic NYC. Magic has its place which will come to light later on in the game but otherwise is relatively unavailable to players. Players will go out to fight werewolves and gather supplies/help and in the process learn things they need to know concerning the werewolves.

I cannot go into much detail without revealing plot points though so I hope this answers your questions.

EDIT: Oh also everyone lives in the cathedral since its protected by ancient wards and seems to be the only place the lycans can't get into... for now. Outside the cathedral, the lycans control the ruined city. Any humans that live out there are subjected to the dangers more so than those who are within the cathedral. So not all humans have found sanctuary there.

The city that never sleeps is actually rather quiet in most parts of it due to the majority of the populace managing to evacuate before the destruction of the bridges, etc. Think "I AM LEGION" but werewolves instead of undead and a few hundred humans instead of three, and battle damage to the city.

My question concerns the conventional defenses the Cathedral might have, besides its protective wards, should there be any. Location in the building and type. This OOC discussion thread is already awesome. Good Q&A up there.

I'll draw up a map of the basic defenses for you. I can tell you that there are 2 guards at each of the 5 bronze doors. Although there are 5, only one can be opened, the main door. The rest have barricades but are still guarded just in case. Lookouts and snipers in the main towers and patrols atop the cathedral and outside. A few guards walk the interior nave and the upper terrace/corridor.

As for weapons and barriers, I need to look into something first before I can answer that part.

-----------
MOTTI: Thou shalt not 'tempt to frighten us with words so like a man of magic, Vader. Nay, thy sorc'rer's act is tir'd and overdone. The sad religion thou dost cling to hath no pow'r to conjure up the stolen plans. Nor dost thou have a third-eye's sight to make--

Added a better floor plan of the cathedral, taken directly from their website. Also added a basic defense plan concerning the guards. The rooftop is also patrolled. Any weapon defenses will not be pictured since they are likely to be moved at any point.

Windows and Doors: The mosaic windows are left unbarred due to that the majority are too high to reach or that Father Minghan just won't allow it for religious reasons (feel free to argue with him on it). Any modern windows found in offices or rooms will be boarded up with plywood. The exterior doors, except the main bronze one, are barred with metal or wood. The bronze door is the only way in and out of the cathedral. The crypt is closed off to non-clergy but the entrance is guarded just in case.

Oak Trees: The south side is covered by trees. This area is pretty much the equivalent of a garden or tiny park for the cathedral. Hunters traps and small anti-personnel explosives will have been placed here.

Weapons: Portable anti-personnel weapons cover the bronze door, North and South transept entrances. The upper corridors overlook the nave, transepts and sanctuary and provide high-ground for the defenders should the cathedral be breached. The main organ above the narthex provides high-ground also. Anti-personnel weapons can be brought up here when needed. The rooftop also have a few anti-personnel weaponry positioned around the cathedral. The towers are armed with whatever the lookouts bring with them. Grenades, cocktails, and other small arm explosives are available to any of the defenders on duty.

Streets: Fifth Avenue and Madison have wrecked vehicles up and down the streets which can be used as cover for both sides. Some were moved to block off the four streets at either ends. Snow and ice currently covers the streets and vehicles.

That's just basic defenses. Anything more elaborate or creative, I'll leave to you guys.

Courtesy of
@Ktala, I've added city maps of the area surrounding the cathedral. Apparently we're smack dab in the middle of the Entertainment district of NYC. Lol. Well that explains how we've managed to survive for 10 years. Everything we needed was just right next door.

I saw. I'll upload it to my site to fix it in a bit, but if you copy image location to your browser bar you can view it in the meantime.

-----------
MOTTI: Thou shalt not 'tempt to frighten us with words so like a man of magic, Vader. Nay, thy sorc'rer's act is tir'd and overdone. The sad religion thou dost cling to hath no pow'r to conjure up the stolen plans. Nor dost thou have a third-eye's sight to make--

Goddamn it, I had no choice but to put in a CS. Let's hope we all have a lot of fun!

Also, open question for Mitth that might be of some significance: what's the general experience on how potent Lycan senses are? I mean, if you go by wolf senses, here's a quick summary I pulled up from the Net...

Sense of smell

The sense of smell in the wolf is highly developed, as would be expected in an animal possessing numerous scent glands. The distance at which any scent can be detected is governed by atmospheric conditions but, even under the most favorable conditions , 1.75 miles denotes a particularly keen sense of smell. The wolves usually travel until they encounter the scent of some prey species ahead of them. They then move directly toward their prey in an effort to capture it.

HEARINGNext to smell, the sense of hearing is the most acute of the wolf's senses. Wolves can hear as far as six miles away in the forest and ten miles in the open. Wolves can hear well up to a frequency of 25 khz. Some researchers believe that the actual maximum frequency detected by wolves is actually much higher, perhaps up to 80 khz (the upper auditory limits for humans is 20 khz), also according to some naturalist wolves' hearing is greater than that of the dog.\

SIGHTWolves also have keen eye sight and are quick to detect the slightest movement of anything in front of them. Being major predators, thier eyes are on the front of there heads, and they have probably a little less than 180-degree vision, unlike their prey species, which can see over 300 degrees of a circle.

The point being, given Manhattan's size and the fact we're all still alive, surely Lycan senses aren't quite as fully developed as this? Maybe it's because of the human templating onto wolf form, but if Lycans have the senses of a wolf then we'd all have been tracked down and killed years ago you'd have thought. I'd have thought surely some of us have had close calls with Lycans which have allowed us to gauge how sensitive they are - any guidance on this issue?

Also, I had one other open question, which really related to a confirmation of population density and exactly how frequent/rare people are in this town: accepting there's about twice as many Lycans as humans on Manhattan island, I think I saw somewhere that the population is actually really low: maybe a couple hundred humans left with twice as many Lycans - so say a total of 200+500 = 700. The whole of Manhattan Island is 59.5 square km (22.96 square miles), which would be an average population density of about 30 people per square mile. That's below the lowest population density of medieval times, and compares to the population density of places like Zimbabwe, Latvia, and the Faroe Islands in Denmark. (Ironically it also reflects the strict average population density of the whole United States at 35 people per square mile!) The point is, is it really as quiet on the Island as I'd anticipate out here?[/B]

*grumbles and curses at browser* Stupid browser crashed my computer and I lost everything I had been googling! Raawr!

On regards to senses (knew I forgot something): Just as keen as a wolf. Even though they can sniff out prey, it has been proven that a bloodhound (which has the best nose of all dogs) can lose track of a scent in a city due to the fact that there are just far too many scents to follow and the one they are tracking ends up masked. Now as the years progress, it'll be easier to track the survivors since scents do get washed away by wind and water eventually and the city is not as active as it once had been.

Does that mean the lycans have it easy to hunt and kill the humans now? Yes and no. For the majority of humans that got stranded on Manhattan, they fell prey to the lycans in the beginning. Those that remain have learned to keep the lycans away and places like St. Patrick's are protected by holy magic.

In regards to population. What I gave was an estimate. Most of the humans are in St. Patrick's anyway and that place can seat up to 2500 people at a time and that's just the seating capacity. Any humans outside of St. Patrick's either don't know about it (which is unlikely by now) or think its a feeding fest waiting to happen and prefer to stick it out alone. Manhattan also has an intricate network of subway systems, maintenance tunnels and catacombs underground; the perfect place for a bunch of werewolves to live where humans won't dare to go. Then you have all the skyscrapers which add even more space to hide and live in.

In regards to how quiet it is: For Manhattan the place is very quiet. Over the years the survivors have encountered lycans and humans. Both sides have taken the conflict to each other on a regular basis and as the years pass, that conflict has increased exponentially as the need for food and fresh water and other supplies becomes paramount. Of course the human survivors have found ways to grow food in the city and filter water. The lycan's, on the other hand, can't exactly grow humans in a planters box.

Okay I got one more player coming in giving us a total of 8 players. I will take two more players after that and then submissions will be closed. So anyone who is lurking that wants in, you better decide now or end up on a waiting list.